“Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel across the country coast to coast without seeing anything or meeting anybody.”
- Charles Kuralt
“Life doesn't happen along the interstates. It's against the law.”
- William Least Heat-Moon
Saturday I went downtown here in Springfield to see my friends' band, Mabel Laine, play at the Route 66 Festival. It's an annual event that celebrates the Road's heritage, largely with the displaying of vintage, restored automobiles, the kind that would have traveled #66 in its glory days. Springfield was on the first stretch of that highway that went from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California, and the city is happy to be a part of the nostalgia. In fact, a local businessman and civic leader at the time of its inception, John Woodruff, was responsible for securing its official name and promoting the road nationally.
Construction on Route 66 began in 1926. Upon it completion in 1938, it was the first continuous highway in the U.S. Prior to it, automobile travel in America was done on a patchwork of local roads that varied in quality and maintenance. The road quickly became a popular route for American travelers. Local businesses along the way sprang up to accommodate their needs. During the depression, it was a major thoroughfare for downtrodden dustbowl travelers migrating west for opportunity. In his classic novel of that era, The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck named it “The Mother Road." It was also heavily traveled During WWII with war effort traffic.
After the war, Americans, with more money and leisure time on their hands, kept Route 66 humming on their way to the Grand Canyon, Disneyland and other must-see sites. Automobile sales had doubled to 52 million cars by then. The nation was on the move. So much so that an expanded network of highways was deemed critical. In 1956 President Eisenhower signed the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act. Over the next three decades, 41,000 miles of interstates were built that incrementally rendered Route 66 obsolete. It was officially decommissioned in 1985, largely replaced by Interstate 40.
I traveled what parts were left of it in 1980, driving from Springfield to Barstow, California for my last year in the Marine Corps. There were still remnants of its past glory: retro motels and gas stations, quirky roadside attractions and kitschy gift shops. There was still a hint of the road's uniqueness that spawned the popular song and TV show in the 1960s. I did not attempt to eat the 72 ounce steak at the Big Texan in Amarillo, but I did take in Cadillac Ranch. I also got an unfortunate haircut in Tucumcari, New Mexico as a memento of my journey.
The memory of Route 66 and the simpler time it represents continues to thrive. The great American road trip is part of our national ethos; it's built into our psyche. It's the subject of countless books, movies and songs:
Get your motor runnin'
Head out on the highway
Lookin' for adventure
And whatever comes our way
In regard to songs, how many are the subject of or reference roads and highways? Can you even imagine the list? We love to sing about them. A half a dozen come to mind before you even have to think about it, huh? How about any lesser-knowns that you fancy? Please tell.
*** One last thing: In 1928, as part of the initial promotion effort for Route #66, a transcontinental footrace was organized. It would become known as “The Bunion Derby.” On May 4 of that year, 199 men took off from Los Angeles to see who could get to New York City first. After 84 days and 3,423 miles, a 19-year old Cherokee Nation farmer from Oklahoma named Andy Payne was the victor. That's forty miles a day with no Nikes. Pretty fair.